


The Chocolate Shortage

by Okadiah



Series: The Mrs. Chen Chronicles [2]
Category: Venom (Movie 2018)
Genre: chocolate shortage, just fun, mrs chen looking out for her boys
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-28
Updated: 2018-11-06
Packaged: 2019-08-09 04:30:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,929
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16442990
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Okadiah/pseuds/Okadiah
Summary: When a chocolate shortage strikes the west coast, Mrs. Chen takes it upon herself to get Eddie and Venom what they need.





	1. Shortage

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone! My last Mrs. Chen fic went so well that I couldn't help but write another. So yay! More badass, shrewd, determined Mrs. Chen. I've even turned it into a series too. You all really liked her, lol.
> 
> I want to start this off first by saying that I'm pulling a little bit from Venom: The Hunger comics -- which explores the symbiote's need for a neurochemical called phenethylamine, which can be found in human brains and by consuming chocolate -- and applied it here. Long story short, my Eddie and Venom need phenethylamine or mindless hunger rage/death happens. Eddie being Eddie prefers the chocolate method.
> 
> Secondly, a chocolate shortage of the magnitude I'm playing with probably would never happen, I know, but we're here to see Mrs. Chen be a badass heroine for the boys. Let's roll with it.
> 
> Now that all the caveats are out of the way, I hope you enjoy! Here's part one.

For most, the chocolate shortage plaguing the west coast due to contaminated batches was more an annoyance than anything truly devastating. Sure, Mrs. Chen had to put up with her fair share or furious chocoholics since the announcement, but they'd live. It was just chocolate.

Eddie and Venom, however? She wasn't so sure about that.

"Hey, Mrs. Cee," Eddie said as he ambled into her store, the tiny bell at the door chiming to announce him.

Her face fell as she took in his sunken eyes, his wild hair, and his pallid, sweaty skin. "Oh my God, Eddie! You look like shit!"

Eddie chuckled, but his face was badly pinched.

"Well, you should see the other guy."

**"I still look better than you."**

Venom – Eddie's symbiote alien friend she now knew – manifested a face and glowered at Eddie. Mrs. Chen's face fell further.

"You _both_ look like shit! Way worse than, like, your really shitty days." Her brow furrowed in concern. "What's wrong?"

**"Hungry,"** the alien sulked.

"Then eat something!"

"It can't be just anything," Eddie said. "He has some pretty specific dietary restrictions. Otherwise, well, it's not good."

**"We could go hunting, Eddie,"** Venom said before he turned to face Mrs. Chen. **"Do you have any bad customers. We will eat them for you. That would help."**

If it would help her best customers, she could think of several rotten assholes she'd be happy never to see again.

"Well—"

"No! No, no, no," Eddie said quickly. "We're just here to ask about the chocolate situation. Believe it or not, chocolate helps fill his needs."

"I see," Mrs. Chen said slowly. "I guess that's why you two have been cleaning me out, isn't it? What about all the tater tots, then?"

Eddie rubbed the back of his neck and gave her a weak smile. "No, those we just like."

The look she gave him judged, and she wanted him to know it. "You eat a lot of them, Eddie. Eat a salad or something."

"I would, but _someone's_ messed around with my taste buds."

**"He doesn't need the same sort of nutrients, not anymore. Not when I can maintain us. Besides,"** Venom said. **"Salad is hardly appetizing."**

"And you are a child," she replied, unimpressed. "So, let me get this straight. You two need chocolate. It's like a vitamin or something?"

"That's a good way of putting it," Eddie said. "We've looked all over the city, but you know how supply and demand is. Prices have skyrocketed everywhere, including online. Everyone wants an arm and a leg for a Kit-Kat."

**"If arms and legs were enough, I'd eat them."**

"You should make your own, then," Mrs. Chen said. "Use Google, Eddie."

**"We did,"** Venom said. **"But ingredients to make chocolate are already gone. There's nothing."**

"Do you have any of the ingredients?" Eddie asked.

Now that they'd said something, she recalled a woman earlier who'd been petulant and fussy and generally a terrible customer. It had been hard for Mrs. Chen to let the lady buy her goods, but the woman _had_ bought a lot of them, and that had smoothed the process.

She remembered thinking this woman must have been desperate for a homemade sweet fix since it had been a lot of sugars and creams and the final bit of cocoa powder she'd happened to find purely by chance this morning in the back of her stockroom. Mrs. Chen had planned on saving it for Eddie and Venom, but the lady had found it and hadn't so much as blinked at the outrageous price Mrs. Chen had set on it to keep everyone away until the boys came in.

It had been too much for her to resist selling at the time, but now Mrs. Chen regretted it. These boys had needed it more.

"Unfortunately, I don't," she said, and the frown lines on Eddie's face deepened. Venom's strange white eyes narrowed and he began to sink back into Eddie's body. But before he could, Mrs. Chen pulled out a small dish with the last of the chocolate chips she'd had in her kitchen cupboard wrapped together in a bit of cellophane.

Venom's eyes widened in time with Eddie’s, and Mrs. Chen abruptly found a mound of black goo on her counter, swirling around the bowl but not quite touching it.

"Take it," she said. "I doubt that's enough, given your usual appetites, but do you think this will help?"

"Any little bit helps. At the very least it'll take the edge off," Eddie replied, reaching for his wallet. "How much can I give you for it."

"Nothing," she said. "I won't accept your money, Eddie. I'd have swindled anyone else but you both need it, and the last thing I need is you two going crazy in my store because of a deficiency."

"Now, Mrs. Chen, wait—"

"No, Eddie," she said firmly. "Take care of yourselves."

"You don't need to do this."

She sniffed. "I can't have my best customers dying on me." With her fingertips, she pressed the dish into Venom's writhing mass and was pleased to see that the symbiote appeared to have no reservations about the gift. Black tendrils curled around the plastic-wrapped chocolates, but before Venom could squirrel it away, Eddie snatched it.

**"Eddie!"**

"You'll eat it all in one go. We've gotta make it last." Eddie frowned at Mrs. Chen but sighed and nodded, tucking the chocolate away in a pocket. "Thanks, Mrs. Chen. We appreciate it."

"This isn't good, Eddie," she said, a frown crossing her lips. "From what I’ve heard, no one will be getting regular shipments in for at least another week. Do you think you'll be able to last that long?"

The look he gave her told the truth, even if what he said instead was, "We'll have to."

**"If not, we will try to stay away from here. Wouldn't want to accidentally eat y—"**

"How about I text you?" Eddie said quickly, cutting off the alien, even if her lips pressed thin in response to the unspoken but obvious end to Venom's sentence. "If I do, well, you should keep clear."

"We'll see, Eddie."

Eddie made his best attempt at a smile, but it was weak and shitty and told her more than he clearly wanted her to know.

Mrs. Chen watched them go, Venom seeping into Eddie's skin and Eddie with his head down and shoulders hunched, more pathetic looking than he’d been before the Life Foundation. They really did look bad, and with no end in sight to the chocolate shortage, she was sure they _would_ get worse – and truly, she didn't want to know what would happen if they didn't get enough, even if she could guess.

Despite what Eddie said, she had good instincts. If they didn't get a sizable amount of chocolate soon – and she should know, given how much she sold them on a regular basis – bad things would happen, and she knew Eddie. He was a good one, always helping where he could. A man with a big heart, too much honesty, and just stupid enough to tear himself apart if the situation got too bad.

It was stupid of her, but they were her best customers. And they were definitely her favorites.

And that meant something to Mrs. Chen.

Which was why by the time the bell to the door had stopped ringing, she'd already tugged the phone toward her and dialed.

"Mao's," a woman’s voice on the other line said. Mrs. Chen adjusted the phone on her shoulder and waved as another of her regulars entered the store.

"Mao, it's Chen," she said. "I need your help finding something. Specialty item."

"Oh?" Mao said. "What are you looking for?"

Mrs. Chen leaned against the counter and said seriously, "Chocolate."


	2. Negotiations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we have Mrs. Chen fighting Mrs. Chen's way for the boys. This was a fun little chapter to write. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

Mrs. Chen fully expected Mao to laugh at her request, but the other woman didn't laugh too long, not when it became clear just how serious she was.

"You’re joking," Mao said. "You know the situation. Just wait a week and tell whoever's asking for the chocolate to fuck themselves."

"It's a favor," Mrs. Chen said. "Have you heard anything or not?" A deep, put-upon sigh slipped out of the phone and Mrs. Chen's lips pursed. "Remember, I helped you last time when you were looking for that shipment of duck eggs."

"Bah!" the other woman exclaimed into the phone. "Fine. As a matter of fact, I _have_ heard something."

"Well?"

And so, early the next morning, Mrs. Chen began her hunt for chocolate. According to Mao's network, there were supposedly caches being sold here and there with certain vendors across the city. Vendors who, of course, were willing to part with such specialty items in these times of great need. So long as the price was right.

She was going to ensure that the price was right. Right for _her_.

The first place she checked was completely useless. The man there had only a handful of 'fun-sized' candy bars, and most of them contained only a fraction of chocolate. The price had been outrageous, and even if it hadn’t been, she still would not have taken the deal. The amount he had wasn’t enough for her boys.

She kept following leads, checking every source Mao had given her and everything she'd been able to dig up on her own until she had a strong idea of how to proceed. Most of the name-brand stuff was out of the question. The prices alone were repulsive – although she couldn't say that she wouldn't have charged them herself if she'd had the opportunity – and what little there was, was just that. Little. Not worth it.

The homemade chocolate market, however, was a different story entirely.

Mrs. Chen couldn't say she was surprised that housewives were running it. In times of crisis like these, it was always they who profited the most with their homely smiles, honed cooking skills, and shark-like sense for how to make an extra buck. Within this market she found there were several suppliers, each uniquely specialized so as not to step on the others’ efforts and risk a minor war. Mrs. Galaway baked chocolate cakes. Mrs. Moore provided chocolate brittle. Mrs. Salazar threw together chocolate cookies. Mr. Brighton made brownies.

What she was interested in, however, was old Mrs. Hughes's chocolate fudge. And a glance at her kitchen counter told Mrs. Chen that there was more than enough there to help Eddie and Venom.

"Please, sit," Mrs. Hughes said as she used her cane to ease her body down onto an old flower-print sofa. She gestured with wrinkled hands to a tea set before them. "Tea?"

"No thank you," Mrs. Chen said evenly.

"You won't mind if I take some myself, then?" The old woman poured a cup and took it and the saucer in her hands. "Now, what can I help you with, Mrs. Chen?"

"I heard you are selling chocolate fudge."

Mrs. Hughes smiled. "You've heard right."

"And it's made with authentic chocolate," Mrs. Chen said. "No substitutes?"

"My dear, there's a reason why I'm known for my fudge," Mrs. Hughes said proudly. "It's an old family recipe, and I am _generous_ with the cocoa powder. Even during this little chocolate drought we're having now, I haven't changed the recipe."

"But aren't you worried you'll run out of chocolate?"

Mrs. Hughes smirked, her crow’s feet wrinkling and her old eyes glinting behind her glasses. "An old lady like me has her ways. Now, how much do you want?"

Finally, what Mrs. Chen had been waiting for. The negotiations were beginning.

"Three pounds," she said, chin up and face carefully blank. "And I am willing to pay this much for them."

Mrs. Hughes glanced at the number Mrs. Chen had written and frowned.

"I'm sorry, dear, but I simply can't hand out quality products like mine for such a low price. I'd be practically giving them away, and I have my cats to feed. I'm sure you understand."

Mrs. Chen arched a brow. There were no cats here. Mrs. Hughes smiled again.

Mrs. Chen increased the price ever so slightly. Mrs. Hughes refused to budge.

Mrs. Chen commented on how much fudge there was. Mrs. Hughes must not be selling as well as she’d have her believe.

Mrs. Hughes replied it was a fresh batch. The last five sold hours after they were made. She recommended Mrs. Chen buy soon before others came for the bounty.

It went back and forth like this, Mrs. Chen adapting business tactic after tactic, trying to find this old woman's weak point, that hole in her armor which would help Mrs. Chen make a good deal. But grudgingly she had to admit that Mrs. Hughes was good. Very good. Nothing phased her, nothing made that kindly smile waver in the slightest, and soon Mrs. Chen was approaching the final play she had. Her last card, and also the one she least wanted to play.

She didn't want to leave empty-handed, but if finding the right amount for the best price meant going somewhere else and working someone weaker, than that's what she was going to do.

But the boys needed the chocolate, and Mrs. Hughes was the best option. Mrs. Chen would try everything she could before she gave up to find someone else. Especially after all the time she’d invested in this negotiation alone.

The conversation had hit a lull as they both considered their next moves. Mrs. Chen refused to let the older woman see she was at the end of the line, but she supposed she hadn’t done a very good job considering the slight pinch in Mrs. Hughes's brow.

"It seems the only thing you can do now is leave and see if I'm desperate enough to sell."

Mrs. Chen sighed, her lips pressed thin. "Are you?"

Mrs. Hughes chuckled. "I'm not."

"Then I think it's best that I stop wasting both of our times," Mrs. Chen finally said, reaching for her purse. “Have a good day.”

She was out of her seat and almost to the door when Mrs. Hughes’s aged voice stopped her.

"Why do you want the fudge so badly?” she asked. “I’ve had some come here desperate to make a deal, any deal, but you’re the first who’s worked so hard for a _good_ one."

Mrs. Chen paused, then frowned. The last thing she'd expected was a question like this, but since the negotiations were so close to ending, she didn't see the harm in sharing, if just a little.

"Some boys I know have a type of deficiency which can only be helped by – and I know, it sounds strange – eating chocolate. They aren't doing well right now, and with the shortage ... I'd rather not see them go without it much longer."

"A chocolate deficiency?" Mrs. Hughes said curiously. "Now I've heard it all."

"That's what I said to them as well, but believe it or not, it's true. They look like shit, and it's getting worse every day. I really don't want to deal with them if this goes on much longer."

"And they can't simply wait for the next chocolate shipment, or see a doctor about this?"

Mrs. Chen made a face, thinking of Venom. "No."

Mrs. Hughes eyed her as she sipped her tea. When the old woman put it down, she said, "You're a businesswoman, aren't you?"

"I run a convenience store."

"I knew it the moment you walked in. Shrewd. Focused. I once ran my own business, you know. A long time ago. It makes this little enterprise that much easier. It’s fun and exciting."

"I can imagine," Mrs. Chen replied, wondering where this was going.

"So, let's cut to the chase," Mrs. Hughes said. "I could have sucked anyone else dry, but it won't work with you. We both know all the tricks. We're not getting anywhere. We're at an impasse. And believe it or not, I _do_ want to sell to you."

It was hard not to let the tiniest smile curl the edge of Mrs. Chen's lips. The way forward was opening up at last. "What are you offering?"

"A deal, my dear. You say you run a convenience store? If I give you the fudge and you pay the amount you first suggested, once the chocolate returns I would like three boxes worth of cooking chocolate in return, one for each pound."

"So, this is how you've been getting your supplies. I can’t be the first."

“With the chocolate, you are.” Mrs. Hughes watched her patiently. "That's my offer."

Mrs. Chen's eyes narrowed. "I'm still getting a bargain."

"Let's just say I like your tenacity,” Mrs. Hughes replied pleasantly. “It reminds me of when I was a young woman, and you've been great fun. Now. Deal?"

Five minutes later, Mrs. Chen walked triumphantly out of Mrs. Hughes’s house with the three pounds of homemade chocolate fudge she’d come for, and a satisfied little smile on her lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All that's left now is the delivery. Till next time!
> 
> You can follow me for more of my Venom content on [my tumblr](https://symbrock-darling.tumblr.com/). I'm taking prompt requests there too, so if you have one, feel free to send an ask!


	3. Delivery

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And the final part of this fun little story about the amazing Mrs. Chen. I hope you enjoy!

Although Eddie had never told Mrs. Chen where he lived, his place wasn't hard to find. Not when everyone on the block came into her store to buy whatever they needed and complain while they did it. More than a few people had bitched about strange shouting in one of the nearby apartment buildings. The same one which had that strange shooting before the Life Foundation fell. It was everything she needed to know.

And frankly, she could understand why so many of the residents complained about noise – not only about Eddie and Venom, but about everything else too. Several someones were currently playing music outrageously loud. Babies cried in one apartment, breathy moans swelled from another, and Mrs. Chen was relieved that the worst she and her husband had to deal with were each other and the damned cooling unit that never stopped dripping.

She didn't know specifically which apartment – only the floor – but that wasn't a problem in the end. Because the walls were so thin, she heard the muffled sounds of Eddie and Venom yelling at each other long before she found herself at the end of the hall. Curious, she stopped and turned her ear to the door.

"No! We are _not_ going outside!"

**"You can't stop me, Brock!"**

"I'm not going to let you ruin everything for us when things are finally getting better. What would Anne think?"

**"She will forgive us once she understands. We're hungry. We’re going!"**

"No, we're not!"

Mrs. Chen sighed and shook her head before she pounded on the door.

"Eddie! Venom! Open up."

The shouting paused for the briefest of moments before Eddie yelled, "Now's _really_ not a good time, Mrs. Chen! You need to go. You can't be here."

"I'm not leaving, not after everything I've gone through to help you two. Here!" Mrs. Chen shook the plastic bag holding the three pounds of fudge she'd managed to procure. "I brought your vitamins!"

Mrs. Chen jumped when the door was yanked open hard enough she heard the hinges screech, and her eyes widened when she saw the shining black goo latched onto the door handle. It stretched out across the apartment from where Eddie stood partially covered and attempting to restrain the alien sharing his body.

**"Mrs. Chen,"** Venom said as his face appeared out of the black mass, tongue lolling out and every tooth shining in the kitchen light. **“We’re so happy to see you.”**

"Show some manners to a house guest," she said boldly as she walked past Venom and placed the plastic bag on the cluttered kitchen island, even as she ignored the way her heart pounded in her chest. "And shut that door."

"Mrs. Chen," Eddie wheezed, still doing his best to restrain Venom. "It's not safe for you to be here right now—"

"Here," she said, pulling out the first Tupperware container and pushing it Venom's way. "Try this. Let me know if it's good enough."

Venom hummed, his voice hitting her with its growling bass, but his hungry white eyes were locked on the mound of chocolate fudge in the container. His long, unnatural tongue curled around a chunk of it before pulling it into his oversized mouth.

Mrs. Chen knew it was the good stuff given the euphoric look that passed over Venom's face and the pure relief which raced across Eddie's.

**"Yes,"** Venom said before working through the rest of the fudge with a singlemindedness that admittedly put her at ease.

"I brought three pounds of it," she explained to Eddie, who was clearly the more rational of the two. "I was guessing how much you might need and I thought I'd lean on the heavier side, to start off with. Do you think this is enough to last you through the week?"

Eddie slowly crossed the way and was staring at the chocolate, then at Venom indulging himself with an obscene gusto Mrs. Chen found she could respect so long as she didn't look at everything too directly, and finally at her.

"Mrs. Chen," he breathed. "How did you—?"

"I have my ways," she replied before nodding to the chocolate before them. "Well? Is this enough for now, or will I have to find more?"

"No. No, I think this is enough," he said, taking a piece of the fudge for himself and consuming it with the same euphoric response his alien had given. "Oh my God, Mrs. Chen. You have no idea how much we needed this. I could kiss you right now!"

"No thanks, Eddie," she said as she watched him in mute astonishment. Venom had already made his way through the first container and was working on the second, but already Eddie was looking way better than he had been. He wasn't as pale, and his eyes weren't as bloodshot and wild-looking. Health seemed to ease slowly back into him. "I can't believe you were serious. You don't look as shitty now."

Eddie snorted through his nose. "Thanks, Mrs. Chen. How much do I owe you?"

"No money, Eddie. What you owe me is time," she replied. "When you're better and this is over, I need you to deliver something for me. I owe several boxes of cooking chocolate to someone now, and the least you can do is take it to her."

Eddie stared.

"That's all?"

"That's all, Eddie."

**"There must be something else we can do to repay your kindness,"** Venom added, lifting from the fudge. **"We will gladly take care of anyone you need eaten."**

" _We_ will not," Eddie said.

**“Whenever you need them eaten.”**

"I'll keep that in mind," Mrs. Chen said, tucking the promise away for later should she ever need it, and Eddie groaned. "Anyway, I've got to go. Let me know if you need any more. I've already placed an order for a chocolate shipment and it should be in by the end of the week.” She fixed them with a look. “After what I've gone through for you, you'd better give me all of your business."

"Wouldn't dream of it any other way," Eddie said with a laugh. "And really. Thanks. You saved us there. You didn't have to do this for us at all." Venom nodded in agreement.

"You stupid boys," Mrs. Chen said with a shake of her head and a small, endearing smile as she thought of all the work they did protecting people and putting good out into the world. Even if it was in their own weird way. It was enough for her. "Of course I did."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can follow me for more of my Venom content on [my tumblr](https://symbrock-darling.tumblr.com/). I'm taking prompt requests there too, so if you have one, feel free to send an ask!


End file.
